BILL NO. 4

(as introduced)

5th Session, 61st General Assembly
Nova Scotia
62 Elizabeth II, 2013

Private Member's Bill

Balanced Budget Act

The Honourable Jamie Baillie
Cumberland South

First Reading: March 27, 2013

(Explanatory Notes)

Second Reading:

Third Reading:

Clause 1 provides a short title to the Act.

Clause 2 limits the year-over-year percentage increase in government spending to an amount equal to the estimated percentage increase in the population of Nova Scotia and the rate of inflation as measured by the change in the Consumer Price Index.

Clause 3 prohibits the Minister of Finance from tabling a budget that is not balanced.

Clause 4 requires the Minister to request that the Government of Canada reduce the provincial portion of the Harmonized Sales Tax to 8%.

1 This Act may be cited as the Balanced Budget Act.

2 Chapter 2 of the Acts of 2010, the Finance Act, is amended by adding immediately after Section 29 the following Section:

29A (1) Notwithstanding Sections 27 to 29 and the Appropriations Act, no public money may be expended in any fiscal year in excess of the expenditures for the immediately preceding fiscal year by more than the estimated percentage increase in the population of the Province and the percentage increase in the previous year in the "all items" Consumer Price Index for the Province prepared by Statistics Canada.

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply

(a) to an expenditure required in the fiscal year because of a natural or other disaster in the Province that could not have been anticipated and that affects the Province or a region of the Province in a manner that is of urgent public concern; or

(b) if the Province has experienced negative growth in its gross domestic product in the two immediately preceding quarters.

54A The Minister shall not table Estimates in the House of Assembly that project a deficit for the Province for the fiscal year to which the Estimates relate.

4 The Minister shall request the Government of Canada to take the necessary action to reduce from 10% to 8% the tax payable in the Province under subsection 165(2) of Excise Tax Act (Canada).